Oxygen to debut new 'The Face' modeling competition with host Nigel Barker on February 12

By Elizabeth Kwiatkowski, 12/28/2012

Oxygen has announced The Face, a new reality competition series that will feature aspiring female models vying to win the opportunity to become "the face" of ULTA Beauty, will premiere on Tuesday, February 12 at 9PM ET/PT.

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In addition, the network revealed it will kick off the series by airing The Face: The Fight to Make the Final 12, a one-hour special broadcast in which the show's three supermodel coaches Naomi Campbell, Karolina Kurkova and Coco Rocha will make their 12 selections amongst 24 hopefuls, on Tuesday, February 5 at 9PM ET/PT.

Hosted by former America's Next Top Model fashion photographer and judge Nigel Barker, the new seven-episode series will follow 12 models as they compete in real-life challenges relevant to a supermodel's career.

The contestants will gain access to clients and national brands, such as W magazine, along with mentorships from industry veterans -- including photographer Patrick Demarchelier, NBA basketball star Amare Stoudemire and talk show host and former Dancing with the Stars participant Wendy Williams.

"The top 12 young women selected for Team Naomi, Team Karolina and Team Coco will battle it out each week in two different challenges, a Test Shoot and Campaign, assessing their fundamental skills and versatility as a model," according to Oxygen.

Brand representatives and guest judges from each challenge will then choose the winning team, leaving each supermodel coach from the bottom two teams to nominate a member of her team for elimination. The winning coach will ultimately decide who will be sent home, and during the season finale, only one contestant will win the grand prize of becoming a spokesperson for the ULTA Beauty Fall and Holiday 2013 national ad campaigns.

In the season premiere, the 12 models will move into their New York loft and compete in their first Test Shoot called "Who Wore It Better." Afterwards, the girls will participate in a Campaign photo shoot challenge in which they must interpret the frames of a storyboard for W magazine while modeling on the docks overlooking New York City.

During The Face: The Fight to Make the Final 12, Campbell, Kurkova and Rocha will each choose their teams of four young women to mentor based upon the aspiring models' runway walk and performance in a photo shoot without make-up.

Oxygen announced Campbell would be serving as a supermodel coach for The Face in May, while Barker, Kurkova and Rocha's participation was revealed back in July.

The Face is being produced by Shine America with Campbell, Elisabeth Murdoch, Eden Gaha, Paul Franklin, and Andrew Frank serving as executive producers.